Palatomaxillary Cancer

Causes of Palatomaxillary Cancer

Like with most cancers, doctors can’t tell you with certainty what caused your palatomaxillary cancer. It’s a combination of genetic predisposition and factors in your environment.1Petersen PE. Oral cancer prevention and control – The approach of the World Health Organization. Oral Oncol. 2008.

Tobacco: This is by far the most common factor contributing to palatomaxillary cancer. Smoking cigarettes, cigars or pipes and using chewing tobacco greatly increase your chance of getting any oral cancer.2Ko YC, Huang YL, Lee CH, Chen MJ, Lin LM, Tsai CC. Betel quid chewing, cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption related to oral cancer in Taiwan. Journal of oral pathology & medicine: official publication of the International Association of Oral Pathologists and the American Academy of Oral Pathology. Nov 1995;24(10):450-453.

Alcohol: Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol is also very strongly associated with getting oral squamous cell cancers. Moreover, if you both smoke and drink heavily, the risk more than doubles.2Ko YC, Huang YL, Lee CH, Chen MJ, Lin LM, Tsai CC. Betel quid chewing, cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption related to oral cancer in Taiwan. Journal of oral pathology & medicine: official publication of the International Association of Oral Pathologists and the American Academy of Oral Pathology. Nov 1995;24(10):450-453.

Betel nut: This is the seed of the areca tree. It is often chewed by people from Southeast Asia and is known to cause oral cancer.2Ko YC, Huang YL, Lee CH, Chen MJ, Lin LM, Tsai CC. Betel quid chewing, cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption related to oral cancer in Taiwan. Journal of oral pathology & medicine: official publication of the International Association of Oral Pathologists and the American Academy of Oral Pathology. Nov 1995;24(10):450-453.

It is important for you to know, however, that minor salivary gland cancers can occur on the hard palate. These cancers are not related to the standard risk factors described above. We don’t know with certainty what causes salivary gland cancer. See Oral Salivary Gland Cancer for more details.